Opposition supporters in Pakistan have temporarily called off protests demanding the release of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan, a day after marching on central Islamabad. Protesters had vowed not to leave the capital until Khan's release.

The party of Pakistan's jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan suspended street protests seeking his release, it said on Wednesday, following media reports of hundreds of arrests by security forces in a sweeping midnight raid in the capital.

Mr Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) said a “massacre” unfolded in Pakistan and the armed forces fired live rounds, killing “hundreds of people” and many injured with gunshot wounds. It did not give a number as to how many were killed.